Privately, ministers admitted there was a "wobble" at Downing Street.A spokeswoman for the commission told The Independent last night that the body would not question Mr Blair's right to call an election, which remained a political decision.But she added: "We will be seeking assurances that voters in the affected areas will be able to receive election literature and will be in a position to vote without hindrance and by post if necessary."If the contests go ahead, the commission would keep the arrangements in the areas hit by foot-and-mouth under review and would make representations to the Government if problems developed.Further signs that Mr Blair may retreat came when Alastair Campbell, his official spokes-man, said the deadline for suspending the local elections could be extended beyond Monday, possibly until after candidates had been nominated.. Tory Eurosceptics are helping to fund a "no" campaign in Ireland's forthcoming referendum on the European Union's Nice treaty. Tory Eurosceptics are helping to fund a "no" campaign in Ireland's forthcoming referendum on the European Union's Nice treaty. The European Foundation, which is run by Bill Cash, MP for Stone, and which has five Shadow Cabinet members on its board, appealed yesterday for "Eurorealists" to support their counterparts in the Irish Republic.Ireland will be the only EU state to hold a referendum on the Nice treaty, possibly in June or July this year Eurosceptics hope a "no" vote will scupper its ratification. EU treaties must be ratified by all 15 member states, and if Ireland rejects it, it will have to be renegotiated.The Tories, who promise to hold a British referendum on the treaty if they win power, believe it transfers too much power from the UK to Brussels by scrapping vetos in key areas.Robin Cook, the Foreign Secretary, accused the group of interfering in the internal affairs of another state and warned that cash from Tory hardliners could skew the debate in Ireland. A similar fund-raising effort by Tories last year helped pay for adverts in Danish media advocating a "no" vote against membership of the euro.Mr Cash called yesterday for solidarity with Anthony Coughlan, the leading Eurosceptic in Ireland. Mr Coughlan wrote in the European Foundation's magazine that democrats all over Europe needed to give the Irish "no" campaign "all the help they can".Mr Cash, the chairman of the foundation, appealed for funds to be sent to the offices of the National Platform, Mr Coughlan's campaign group."Given the European and international implications of the Nice treaty, it is not only justifiable but constitutionally right for individuals in other member states to seek to influence the outcome of the referendum," Mr Cash said.But Mr Cook said: "It seems that the anti-Europeans cannot resist interfering in the internal debates of other European countries.

They did it in Denmark, now they are trying to do it in Ireland."Bill Cash would be the first to complain if Britain in Europe [a pro-EU group] received foreign money. The fact that they are willing to do this shows how far they are prepared to go to further their objective of British disengagement from Europe," Mr Cook said.. The Conservatives have claimed that the Government's welfare policies are "in a shambles" after new figures showed that the number of incapacity benefit (IB) claimants had risen to 2.3 million. The Conservatives have claimed that the Government's welfare policies are "in a shambles" after new figures showed that the number of incapacity benefit (IB) claimants had risen to 2.3 million. The rise of 51,000 in nine months outweighs the fall in unemployment claimants heralded by ministers last week, leading the Opposition to suggest that Labour was "fiddling the figures".According to research released to Parliament by National Statistics, the number of IB claimants had risen for the third quarter in a row. From 2,259,000 in February 2000, the figure rose to 2,263,000 in May, 2,286,000 in August and 2,310,000 in November. The rises follow steep falls in the Tories' last years and the early years of New Labour.During the Major government, Labour claimed ministers massaged the headline jobless rate by persuading the unemployed to move to incapacity benefit. The Tories suggested last night that ministers were now using a similar tactic.

The unemployment claimant rate fell below the 1 million mark last week.David Willetts, the shadow Social Security Secretary, said the Government had failed to meet even its own target set out in 1998 to cut the number of IB claimants. "The figures show that Labour's welfare policies are in a shambles. Yet again, they have failed to deliver real reform," he said.The Department of Social Security yesterday announced new work rules for people on incapacity benefit aimed at getting them back into work.Under the rules, claimants will be able to work up to 16 hours a week, with earnings of up to £60.50 a week, for a year. The rules will provide a "stepping stone" to full-time work.. Britain, other European Union countries and America may be forced to pay compensation for the past wrongs of slavery through development aid under radical proposals being discussed before a world conference on racism. Britain, other European Union countries and America may be forced to pay compensation for the past wrongs of slavery through development aid under radical proposals being discussed before a world conference on racism. Western states with a colonial past are prepared to express regret for such historical misdeeds, but so far reject the issue of compensation and reparation, which could run into billions of pounds.The practice of slavery is already recognised as a crime against humanity in the statutes of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, but prosecution can only be brought in contemporary cases.The compensation move would crown the four-year term of Mary Robinson, the UN high commissioner for human rights, who announced this week that she would step down after the conference in Durban, South Africa, at the end of August.